<i>Enterococcus faecalis</i> modulates phase variation in <i>Clostridioides difficile</i>.

ABSTRACT: To adapt and persist in the gastrointestinal tract, many enteric pathogens, including Clostridioides difficile, employ strategies such as phase variation to generate phenotypically heterogeneous populations. Notably, the role of the gut microbiota and polymicrobial interactions in shaping population heterogeneity of invading pathogens has not been explored. Here, we show that Enterococcus faecalis, an opportunistic pathogen that thrives in the inflamed gut during C. difficile infection, can impact the phase variable CmrRST signal transduction system in C. difficile. The CmrRST system controls multiple phenotypes including colony morphology, cell elongation, and cell chaining in C. difficile. Here we describe how interactions between E. faecalis and

SUBMITTER: Weiss AS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12330587 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature